This is a book written by British authors to assist United Kingdom anesthesia registrars in preparing for their oral board examination in the specialty. It is not specifically designed for the American Board of Anesthesiology (ABA), but rather is a generic guide to important information for ABA oral board preparation. Although there are no stem questions or new format questions to study (unlike the popular oral board preparation book entitled Board Stiff), this book does have significant value as a study guide for the oral board examination. The Structured Oral Examination in Clinical Anaesthesia: PracticeExamination Papers consists of 10 complete sets of structured oral examinations. Each set is subdivided into 2 sections, clinical anesthesia and clinical science. Each clinical anesthesia section is composed of 1 long and 3 short cases, and relevant clinical information for each long case is presented. Each clinical science case is composed of 4 key topics: applied anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, and physics of equipment used in anesthesia practice. This book is designed to assist the reader in making rational decisions when discussing various case scenarios. Most importantly, the reader is shown how to assess their knowledge and provide answers that they can defend. Each structured oral examination long case is composed of a scenario, relevant material such as history, clinical presentation, laboratory results, electrocardiograms, chest radiographs, echocardiographic findings, pulmonary function test results, and a series of questions and answers. Each question provides the reader with answers organized by organ system. At the end of each long case scenario, key points and further reading materials are provided. Each long case is followed by 3 short cases that are composed of a short scenario with a series of questions, answers, key points, and a reading list to provide readers with additional breadth and depth of information related to the topic. The short cases reviewed represent more diversified topics that also appear regularly on the examination (e.g., emergency cesarean delivery, head injury, myasthenia gravis, latex allergy, and acute and chronic pain issues). The long cases provide the reader with helpful hints, updates, and key points on how to manage various clinical scenarios. Answers are provided for all questions at the end of each long case. Although this book contains a unique combination of information, it does not describe the format of the ABA oral board examination. The Structured Oral Examination in Clinical Anaesthesia is organized in a perioperative (i.e., pre-, intra-, and postoperative) format and provides enough specifics to be a valuable oral board preparation tool. A critical review of actual oral examination scenarios would be a useful addition to the book. In addition, reorganizing the 10 cases into a stem question format (i.e., question and answer) would be helpful to the candidate preparing for the ABA oral board examination. In summary, this book is a useful study guide for anesthesia trainees in the oral board preparation process. The book contains much useful review information, and more importantly, explains how to proceed with a differential diagnosis, with in-depth discussions of likely causes, diagnostic procedures, and treatment modalities. Reviewing specific clinical scenarios, specific questions, and appropriate responses should facilitate the examinee's learning curve in preparing for their oral board examination. Our major criticism of this book relates to the fact that it is not written as an ABA oral board preparation book in contrast to Board Stiff. However, it does provide more useful academic material than Board Stiff and is a useful study guide for the oral examination. Roya Yumul, MD, PhD Ronald H. Wender, MD Department of Anesthesiology Cedars-Sinai Medical Center Los Angeles, California [email protected]